diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 08e9054..248a4e4 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -49,6 +49,7 @@ Certain values can be set via environment variables, using the `-e` parameter on
 * __TEMP_DIR__: Path where intermediary download files will be saved. Defaults to `/downloads` in the Docker image, and `.` otherwise.
   * Set this to an SSD or RAM filesystem (e.g., `tmpfs`) for better performance.
   * __Note__: Using a RAM filesystem may prevent downloads from being resumed.
+* __CHOWN_DIRS__: If `false`, ownership of `DOWNLOAD_DIR`, `STATE_DIR`, and `TEMP_DIR` (and their contents) will not be set on container start. Ensure user under which MeTube runs has necessary access to these directories already. Defaults to `true`.
 
 ### 📝 File Naming & yt-dlp
 
diff --git a/docker-entrypoint.sh b/docker-entrypoint.sh
index 7e4efea..7e0f4fa 100644
--- a/docker-entrypoint.sh
+++ b/docker-entrypoint.sh
@@ -9,8 +9,10 @@ if [ `id -u` -eq 0 ] && [ `id -g` -eq 0 ]; then
     if [ "${UID}" -eq 0 ]; then
         echo "Warning: it is not recommended to run as root user, please check your setting of the UID environment variable"
     fi
-    echo "Changing ownership of download and state directories to ${UID}:${GID}"
-    chown -R "${UID}":"${GID}" /app "${DOWNLOAD_DIR}" "${STATE_DIR}" "${TEMP_DIR}"
+    if [ "${CHOWN_DIRS:-true}" != "false" ]; then
+        echo "Changing ownership of download and state directories to ${UID}:${GID}"
+        chown -R "${UID}":"${GID}" /app "${DOWNLOAD_DIR}" "${STATE_DIR}" "${TEMP_DIR}"
+    fi
     echo "Running MeTube as user ${UID}:${GID}"
     exec su-exec "${UID}":"${GID}" python3 app/main.py
 else